Cedar Rapids Got Soul (Food)!!

Me, Mommy and Daddy had a little bit of an adventure today. Our mission? Barbecue, pork ribs, lots of sauce...please.

We picked up Dennis and headed over to Al and Irene's BBQ House on the north side of Cedar Rapids. Daddy wasn't too sure it was the place, since it looked like a nondescript strip mall, and the interior decor was....nonexistent.

Mommy said that was the way all good BBQ joints look. "Avoid any place that looks like fine dining if they claim to be a 'cue joint," she said. (Mommy then told me about this place she and Uncle SuperGeorge used to go to for a long time, back when it was on a sleazy corner in downtown Phoenix. She swears it lost something when it moved to a much prettier location, but it's still amazing. Next time we go to Phoenix she and Daddy might take me there.)

Anyway.....Dad got the regular sauce with an Amber Bock, and Mommy got the hot sauce with a Diet Pepsi. Dennis got a combo platter. I got some of Daddy's fries, since I'm still too little to order off of the kids' menu.

Supposedly some idiot food critic said that you could probably find a square dance in Harlem easier than you could find decent soul food in Cedar Rapids.

When's that square dance again, Windy City boy?? Because I really want to show off my sweet moves in the happy poopy dance! ;)

Why do They Call it a Green Card?

Daddy got his last night in the mail. Apparently it is a very big deal, because Mommy called Daddy at work as soon as she got it out of the mailbox.

With luck, Daddy might even become a citizen by the time I get to school!

He can apply for more jobs with his company now that he is a "permanent resident". Whatever that is! But that's not the really confusing thing about it. I don't know my colors all that well, but the card sure doesn't look green to me. Mommy says it's more of a cream color.

I'm just happy Daddy looks better in real life than he does in the picture, if you know what I mean.....

This Season's Hot Accessory Report

I've been to the North Liberty Community Center's playgroup twice this last week. It's fun to run around a big ol' basketball court, especially if you can push a little toy car.

Sometimes, though, I got tired, so I took a little rest right in the middle of the floor with Quackers. Mommy decided to come over and stand next to me the couple of times I did that. She said something about how the older kids on trikes racing around might not see me and might run over me, but they sure would see her and she could block them if she needed to. Which was a good thing, since I almost got clipped twice. She told me not to worry, it wasn't personal, they were just having too much of a good time and that I'd be riding trikes soon with the rest of them.

Mommy finally figured out one of the words I've been trying to tell her for a long time. (Doesn't everyone know that "beeeee" means "ball"?) I got to chase a couple of balls around, too. When the older kids made some baskets in the little hoop I got the giggles hard. So, they kept shooting hoops, and even tossed Quackers into the hoop to keep me laughing. They let me hang out with them a little. There's some nice people in North Liberty!

I'm happy that we are all getting well, so that we can go more places. Last night, I got to check out the Iowa Childrens Museum. That place is fun, and it's pretty close to our house! The last Friday of the month is free admission night. Even though I was only there about 30 minutes, I got to play with the golf balls (Daddy learned what "beeeee" meant as I tossed them around), "directed" the singers at Little Women: The Musical, and checked out Peter the painted turtle.

Mommy says that when I get older, we can enjoy more things on the monthly free night like the mall carousel and the ice skating rink.

But last night was all about what the cool kids were wearing. Yes, dahlink, all the cool kids have a monkey on their backs. Ok, maybe not all the cool kids, since my buddy back in Florida, Mikey, has a bear. There were three of us incredibly cool toddlers running around with monkeys and we were the best looking boys in the place. What can I say? Monkeys are hip in the Corridor. I like mine, because when I was wearing it Mommy and Daddy let me walk around by myself. They said since I'm not a baby any more I can spare their backs and do my own walkin'. Independence rocks!!!

My parents got me a special treat, at the end of the night. I got a giant plastic blue ball for my very own! I was so happy I kept yelling "beeeee! beeeeee!" I wore myself out and had sweet little boy dreams last night.

Life is good, you know?

Happy Easter from Joey Blue Eyes!

I had a terrific Easter! How about you?

It snowed early this morning. I thought it was pretty....looked like a sugar dusting over everything. Somehow it made Mommy and Daddy depressed, though the rain that followed later made them even more homesick for Florida.

Anyway....the Easter Bunny got everything together for my first egg hunt. He even got some wicked cool eggs that looked like sports balls and dinosaur heads for me to find in the dining room. At first, I got a lot of giggles throwing them to the floor, but it was a buzz kill when they didn't open up (must have been the tape around them). Then Daddy picked them up, tossed them to me and I got to put them into my little sand wagon. That was fun!

I am getting really good at climbing stairs, so I thought I'd stand up instead of crawling up them. For some reason, Mommy and Daddy had a "coronary". I didn't know Mommy could sprint up the stairs so fast! Anyway, now I can't crawl up the stairs without them around me any more. Mommy blocked off my access with a huge trunk filled with stuff. It's so heavy I can't move it, and I can't climb over it. Yet.

It's not fair, I tell you!

They did do a great job cleaning up the ground floor, and I've got a bunch of clothes out of the boxes to wear. I wore a bright blue tee shirt with a stegosaurus on it which really brought out the color of my eyes.

Even though they were busy, I got to play a lot of games today. I got this cool stuff called Play Doh that is squishy. I bet it tastes good, too, but Mommy and Daddy put it away every time I try to take a bite out of it.

I also got to run around later with a piece of material on my head. Everyone liked my new "hat".

Daddy's friend Dennis came over for Easter dinner with us. Mommy tried to make mashed potato casserole, but it turned out to be more like soup. They just added little pieces of ham to it and lapped it up. Daddy even had seconds!

The best part of it was the cake Mommy made. It was a coconut cake in the shape of a lamb. Mommy got the cake pan from the local library, of all places! She frosted it with chocolate frosting and sprinkled coconut on it for "wool". I got a little piece and loved it. I hope she makes it again.

I wound up my evening watching Monsters Inc. with Mommy while Daddy drove Dennis home. I like Sully and Mike....they are so funny.

I hope they have Easter every year!

Update on My Girl Back Home

Yep, my girl Brianna is having a rough time. First she got a diagnosis of mono, and today she ended up going to the hospital with pneumonia.

She's resting now. Maybe tomorrow we'll get to talk.

I hope she gets better soon!

Back to Making Mischief!

Well, I've gotten better for the most part. I haven't coughed all morning. I still amuse my parents with my giant booger production. Since I have a small nose, you wouldn't think I could come up with the ones I have. It's impressive!

The snow is mainly gone, but Mommy and Daddy still won't let me out to play in the yard. The front yard is kind of on a busy street, and there's still some ice in the backyard. Plus it's all soggy out there, and the weatherman says we're gonna get something called "flurries".

Mommy said that she and Daddy are gonna let the Easter Bunny inside for my egg hunt. Not sure what that is, but I can't wait to find out. Quackers is gonna help me.

Daddy made Mommy extra happy yesterday when he found her china. They are going to go shopping for new plates soon, because they don't want me to touch the china for some reason. I guess it will make me break out in a rash or something. I hope they get something with monkeys or ducks on it. (Don't tell her, but the china Mommy has is kind of boring. It's just got a gold ring on the edge. My grandmother's is prettier, but I think she knows that. It would look even better with monkeys on it, though.)

They've also gotten rid of some more boxes and found lots of paper. I LOVE PAPER! It's the best thing to play with. I can scrunch it up, I can rip it, and I can stick it on top of my head and hide. No, really! Mommy and Daddy can't see me at all when I do that.

I've also found two more foods I like. Mommy made coconut pancakes yesterday because she found this stuff called coconut flour at this hippie co-op place in Coralville. She added some additional coconut to the batter and made them for Daddy. Daddy gave me a little bite. Coconut is sooooo good that I did my happy poopy dance.

She also let me try a tortilla chip with lime. Yep, more happy poopy dancing!

And no, didn't share any with Quackers. Cookie stole some, though.

So....What's the Happy Poopy Dance?

First of all, I didn't come up with the name. Mommy did. Go figure.

It's what I do when I taste something I like for the first time. I take a nibble, then step back about two steps. I then smile and do a couple squats.

I think I picked that up when I was watching "American Idol". (I don't watch it any more, though, now that Danny's gone home. Carly makes me itch, sorry!) A lot of the singers do that, especially the girls. Watch it sometime if you don't believe me.